The potential locations currently being considered for the 50,000-square-foot, $71.7 million project include Martin Street near Bevins; 675 Lakeport Blvd., adjacent to the Visitor’s Center; and a portion of the Vista Point Shopping Center, also on Lakeport Boulevard.

“The site selection process is proceeding nicely, and we are very pleased with both the progress made and the collaboration between the AOC, our court working group, and our Project Advisory Group,” said Judge Richard Martin, presiding judge of the Superior Court of Lake County.

The three potential sites came out of an extensive site selection process conducted by the AOC, which manages the project, and the court.

Following the Judicial Council’s standard site selection policy, the AOC worked with the court to customize a set of objective criteria that will be used to evaluate potential sites.

These criteria were then validated by the Project Advisory Group, which represents the community and provides advisory input to the AOC and the court.

The new Lakeport Courthouse Project Advisory Group included Mark Brannigan, Lakeport Community Development & Utilities Director; community member Bill Brunetti; Kevin Burke, interim city manager and police chief, city of Lakeport; Lake County Public Services Director Kim Clymire; Lake County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox; District 4 Supervisor Anthony Farrington; Lake County Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Officer Melissa Fulton; District Attorney Jon Hopkins; Lakeport Redevelopment Director Richard Knoll; Chief Bailiff Chris Macedo, of the Lake County Sheriff's Office; Judge Richard Martin; Sheriff Rodney Mitchell; Anne Ording, project manager, Administrative Office of the Courts, Office of Court Construction and Management; Rona Rothenberg, FAIA, senior manager, Administrative Office of the Courts, Office of Court Construction and Management; and Lake County Superior Court Executive Officer Mary E. Smith.

The project team ultimately considered 36 potential sites before narrowing the list down to the three short-listed sites, also endorsed by the Project Advisory Group.

The three most likely sites will be scored and ranked against the criteria in order to make the selection process as objective and thorough as possible.

Officials said it is important to note that the site selection process is still in its early stages, and it is possible that any or all of the current sites under consideration may not work out for any of a variety of reasons.

Should that occur, the project team may revisit other potential sites considered earlier in the process or new sites entirely.

Once a preferred site, and one or more alternate sites are selected and approved by the State Public Works Board, the project team will conduct an environmental assessment under the California Environmental Quality Act before acquiring a site.

Site selection and acquisition typically take between one and two years depending on the complexity of the required environmental assessments, but the project team will accelerate the schedule if possible.

The proposed project will house four courtrooms in approximately 50,000 square feet. It will replace the court's space on the fourth floor of the Lakeport Courthouse. This shared-use building, constructed in 1968, is very overcrowded and has significant security problems, severe accessibility deficiencies, and many physical problems, preventing the court from providing safe and efficient court services to the public.

The new courthouse project, with an estimated total cost of $71.7 million, was ranked as an “Immediate Need” in the judicial branch’s capital-outlay plan and is among the judicial branch’s highest-priority infrastructure projects.

It is among the first of 41 projects to be funded by Senate Bill 1407, which finances critically needed courthouse construction, renovation, and repair through a portion of judicial branch fees, fines, and penalties.

This fiscal year, the project was appropriated $2.6 million for site acquisition and preliminary plans. The AOC also recently announced selection of Santa Rosa-based TLCD Architecture and national firm Shepley Bulfinch to design the new Lakeport courthouse.

More information about the project is at: www.courtinfo.ca.gov/programs/occm/projects_lake_lakeport.htm .

The Judicial Council’s Site Selection and Acquisition Policy for Judicial Branch Facilities is at:

www.courtinfo.ca.gov/programs/occm/documents/site_selection_acquisition_policy.pdf .

Tom Carter, 58, of Upper Lake; Scott Feil, 43, and his wife, Diana, 28, of Upper Lake and Redwood Valley; Steven Swanson, 59, of Sebastopol; and Brett Bassignani, 43, of Nice, are due in the US District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco for a status report hearing on Thursday.

All of them were arrested in August as part of a federal Drug Enforcement Administration operation, as Lake County News has reported.

An indictment listing all five individuals alleges a variety of charges beginning on an unspecified date in 2002 and continuing until Aug. 18. However, the details of how all of the parties were alleged to have worked together isn't specified in court documents.

Carter and Bassignani both are facing charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, which carries a minimum 10-year sentence and $4 million fine, and distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana, which carries a five-year minimum and a $2 million fine.

In May of 2006 Bassignani, who works for Carter's construction company, had reportedly agreed to sell more than 500 marijuana clones to two DEA agents and an informant, who also claimed that Carter was privy to the sale.

Scott and Diana Feil and Steven Swanson – Diana Feil's stepfather – are facing the same charges as Carter and Bassignani, with additional charges of conspiracy to launder money and engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specific unlawful activity, with carry maximum penalties of 20 and 10 years, respectively, with fines of $250,000 per count (or twice the amount of property involved in the transaction).

The Feils and Swanson are accused of distributing more than 100 kilograms of marijuana between 2002 and 2008, according to court records.

In the latest 21-page indictment, the DEA also is seeking a massive property forfeiture from all of the subjects named in the case upon conviction.

The government is seeking properties in Redwood Valley, Upper Lake, Witter Springs, Willits and Ukiah, as well as hotels the Feils own – the Clarion Resort and Hotel and the Scottsfeild Executive Hotel in Eureka, and the Quality Inn and Tradewinds Bar & Grill in fort Bragg.

Other property included on the prospective forfeiture list includes an airplane, speedboat, motorhome, two vehicles and a motorcycle, plus $80,000 in cash seized from Swanson on Aug. 18.

The case is advancing just as last month Scott Feil won an important federal court case against the Los Angeles Police Department.

In a 20-page opinion filed on Oct. 20, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Los Angeles Police Department had failed to show probable cause when it conducted a search of United Medical Caregivers Clinic in Los Angeles, where Scott Feil had been chief executive officer of the time. He also operated a UMCC storefront in Ukiah.

The court found that the Los Angeles Police Department had left out evidence in its search warrant that UMCC may have been operating in compliance with state law.

“By omitting these facts, the LAPD misled a state judge into perceiving UMCC's conduct as criminal when, in fact, it was probably legal under California law,” according to the Ninth Circuit opinion.

The court further noted, “We are particularly concerned by the possibility that the LAPD might stand to profit from unlawful activity.”

That means that Feil is entitled to receive back approximately $186,416 in seized currency, plus 209 pounds of marijuana, 21 pounds of hashish and 12 pounds of marijuana oil taken during the seizure.

Feil has another case, filed in 2006, involving $131,132 in currency he's seeking from the US government.

A stay was placed on that case in September of 2007, noting Feil was the subject of another criminal investigation – apparently referencing the investigation that led to the August arrests – and that it would “adversely affect the government's ability to conduct the related criminal investigation.”

The case continues to be the subject of regular progress reports, according to court records.

It's unclear if the two forfeiture cases are separate or involve the same 2005 incident.

Feil's attorneys in both his civil and criminal cases haven't responded to requests for comment by Lake County News. Carter's attorney also did not respond to an inquiry.

Meanwhile, supporters of Carter – a longtime local contractor who has been involved in charity events and projects – are asking the community for letters of support for Carter that can be presented to the court.

Support letters can be faxed to 707-275-0116 or e-mailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.

The agenda and supporting staff reports can be downloaded at http://www.cityoflakeport.com/departments/docs.aspx?deptID=88&catID=102 .

The state is planning to build a new 50,000-square-foot, $70 million courthouse in Lakeport, and the city's Dutch Harbor property, located on the lakeshore at 901 N. Main St., has made the short list of sites being considered for the project, according to a letter to the city from the Santa Rosa-based real estate firm Keegan & Coppin.

Last Friday, the state Administrative Office of the Courts' Office of Court Construction and Management wouldn't disclose the other short list sites to Lake County News, saying an official announcement is due this Tuesday.

City Redevelopment Manager Richard Knoll's report to the council explains that the basic issue that the council must determine is if it's interested in selling the 4.4-acre property

The site formerly featured a motel which was torn down in 1986, Knoll reported. The city has owned the land since 1993.

Knoll's report explains that Dutch Harbor is zoned commercial and resort residential, and selling it to the state would preclude private development that would bring the city property taxes, tax increment revenue, and potential sales and transient occupancy taxes.

He said the site has a flood zone on it, which limits its developable space. The state's requirement is for a three-acre site, and Knoll noted that Dutch Harbor might not be big enough on its own.

Next door is the Lakeport Unified School District's Natural High School property, which also is undeveloped. School district officials could not be reached for comment late last week on whether or not the site also had made the state's short list.

Besides discussing the courthouse location, the council also will receive and discuss an update on the Mendocino College Lake Center site.

The college has made an offer for a 31-acre property at 2565 Parallel Drive, as Lake County News has reported.

City staff has worked with college officials on a proposed memorandum of understanding for site improvements and a water mainline extension, which the council will consider Tuesday.

Staff also is seeking council direction to initiate a request for proposals for engineering services on the water extension and to prepare a draft reimbursement ordinance to cover the extension project, estimated to cost $550,000, according to city documents.

In other council business, officials will conduct a public hearing on adopting a negative declaration, and adopting Resolution No. 2373 (2009) to approve the city of Lakeport Housing Element Update; consider selection of RAU and Associates to prepare the engineering plan, specifications and estimates for the city of Lakeport Downtown Improvement Phase 2 Project and authorize staff to negotiate a contract; and approve Contract Change Order Numbers 1, 2, and 3 for the Forbes Creek Trail Project.

The council also will hold a closed session to discuss labor negotiations and a disciplinary action for one employee.

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Clearlake Police Chief Allan McClain said that last Friday the Lake County District Attorney's Office issued arrest warrants for Carmen Walsh and Michael Gil Truscott, 30, in connection with the shooting death of 30-year-old Anthony Richard Cruz.

Cruz was shot to death early on the morning of Sept. 4 as he stood at a window at the back of his home on Spruce Avenue.

He had reportedly confronted subjects at the back of his home where he was growing marijuana. Cruz died of a single gunshot wound to the chest, according to police.

McClain said Clearlake Police detectives dedicated an enormous amount of time to track down leads, gather evidence and interview anyone with information regarding this case, with their efforts leading to the arrest warrants for Walsh and Truscott.

Walsh, 40, whose occupation is listed as caregiver, was arrested on a charge of being an accessory on Friday and booked into the Lake County Jail on Saturday, McClain said.

She remains in custody on $35,000 bail and is set for arraignment Tuesday, according to jail records.

McClain clarified that Walsh is not the woman identified as Cruz's girlfriend who was a primary witness to the shooting.

McClain said Truscott is currently in custody in the state prison in Tracy on a parole violation.

Detectives served the arrest warrant, with a bail of $1 million on Truscott and he will be transferred to the Lake County Jail once he has served his time for the parole violation, McClain said.

Truscott and Cruz had been involved in a physical altercation some time before the murder, McClain said.

Police have had previous contacts with Truscott, including a parole sweep conducted in the summer of 2008 in which he was arrested for possession of drugs and paraphernalia, and being a convicted felon in possession of ammunition, as Lake County News has reported.

McClain said he couldn't offer further details at this time about the potential motive, how the crime was committed or the connections between the suspects and Cruz out of concern for the ongoing investigation.

Detectives continue to pursue physical evidence and potential witnesses, McClain said.

McClain asked that anyone with information regarding this investigation contact Det. Mike Ray at 707-994-8251.

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Santa Rosa-based TLCD Architecture and national firm Shepley Bulfinch were chosen to design the project, estimated to cost $71.7 million, according to the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) announced today.

“We are fortunate that the Judicial Council has placed the Lake County courthouse as one of the first projects funded in the state, and we are very pleased with this selection of an architecture partnership that will bring both Northern California experience and national expertise to our new courthouse,” said Presiding Lake County Superior Court Judge Richard C. Martin.

Martin added, “This project is not only critically needed by our court, but it will be an important addition to Lakeport’s civic community and an infrastructure effort that will provide economic benefits for years to come. This expertise will help us ensure that we get it right, and the design of the building will harmonize with our community.”

The current main facility for the Lake County Superior Court is located on the fourth floor of the courthouse and county building at 255 N. Forbes St., built in 1968.

The AOC has determined that the current location is overcrowded and unsafe, posing security and accessibility challenges as well as having physical problems that the state reported prevents the court from offering safe and efficient services to the public.

As a result, the new courthouse project is listed as an “immediate need” in the judicial branch’s capital-outlay plan and is among the judicial branch’s highest-priority infrastructure projects, the AOC reported.

The new, 50,158-square-foot, four-courtroom courthouse is expected to be completed in the fall of 2014, the state reported.

The new courthouse is among the first of 41 projects to be funded by Senate Bill 1407, which finances critically needed courthouse construction, renovation, and repair through a portion of judicial branch fees, fines, and penalties and not county or state general funds, the AOC reported.

AOC spokesman Philip R. Carrizosa told Lake County News that the requests for proposals went out this past Feb. 27.

“No local firms put in a proposal,” Carrizosa said.

The project is in the early stages of site selection, “We're months off on that,” Carrizosa added.

A site selection committee which includes community members is working with the local court and the AOC to review a short list of sites, said Court Chief Executive Officer Mary Smith.

She said the committee is set to meet Tuesday to finalize the short list. At that point the locations on the list will be announced.

TLCD Architecture, founded in 1965, is a 50-member firm that has experience designing numerous Northern California civic buildings for government, academic, health care and community clients, according to its Web site, at www.tlcd.com .

Some of its projects, according to the company Web site, include the Frank R. Doyle Library at Santa Rosa Junior College, Santa Rosa High School's DeSoto Hall – which is in keeping with the campus' historic architecture. The firm also is designing the expansion for Kaiser Santa Rosa Hospital.

They'll work with nationally ranked firm Shepley Bulfinch, founded in 1874 and based in Boston. That firm, which the state said also has extensive civic architecture experience, worked on the recently completed University of California, Riverside Genomics Building. Their client list includes Duke University and Harvard Business School.

Both firms also bring extensive experience in sustainable design to the project, according to the AOC.

The AOC said the architecture team now can begin preliminary space programming. However, architectural design must wait until a site is selected and acquisition is approved by the State Public Works Board.

The site selection and acquisition process typically take a year or more, according to the state.

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Clearlake Police Chief Allan McClain reported that Suzanne Sears, 49, was found deceased in a vacant residence near her home, located east of Highway 53.

The Lake County Sheriff's Office had forwarded a missing person's report on Sears to Clearlake Police on Oct. 10, McClain said.

Sears had reportedly walked away from her home three days before being reported missing, and was last seen in the Davis and Lenore Avenue areas, police reported.

When flyers and press releases generated no leads, McClain said volunteers and Clearlake Police investigators organized a search in the areas where she was last seen, which consisted of rural foothill and grasslands surrounding her residence.

The search led to the discovery of her body in the vacant residence, McClain said.

He said Sears' body showed no signs of visible injury, and investigators don't suspect foul play.

However, McClain said the investigation is ongoing pending the results of an autopsy.

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